Rugsville Vintage Patchwork Overdyed Blue Wool Carpet 6' x 8'

Within the over-dye blue family there is a quieter register and a louder one. The quieter register pulls the indigo bath shorter so the patchwork panels show more of their original colour through the dye; the louder register extends the bath until the indigo dominates. This piece is a quieter blue patchwork, with the indigo softened just enough that the eye can read the panel boundaries and the original tonal life beneath the over-dye. The reading is closer to a Whistler nocturne than to a saturated modernist blue.

Two to three weavers shared this 6' x 8' (183 x 244 cm) loom in India over around four to five months. The panels are hand-spun wool on a cotton foundation. After the patchwork was assembled and reinforced, the rug went through an antique wash and a measured indigo over-dye bath of shorter duration than the standard process, allowing the underlying colour life to remain visible through the blue.

The composition

The patchwork grid is irregular; the indigo over-dye sits over the panels at a measured saturation that lets the underlying colour life remain visible. Some panels read as a deep cool blue, others as a softer dusk blue, others still hold visible traces of their original ochre or rust beneath the dye. The field reads as a single tonally varied blue at distance and as a chromatic patchwork on approach. Over the years the indigo will deepen and the underlying colours will settle into the field.

What you are buying

Hand-assembled patchwork over-dyed wool rugs in a softer blue register price at two to three times this MSRP at Western dealers. The shorter dye-bath time is a workshop choice that produces a more complex field at the same labour cost. The piece appreciates with use as the wool gains lustre and the over-dye settles into the field.

The piece in a room

6' x 8' (183 x 244 cm) anchors a primary bedroom against a queen bed, sits under a low coffee table with a two-seat sofa, or as the floor element in a study. The softer blue register pairs with cream or warm white walls, with raw oak floors, with linen upholstery in oatmeal, with brass and bronze lamps. The chromatic patchwork rewards close inspection; place the rug where the viewer can move around it.

Conservation

Rotate the rug each season for even wear. Vacuum weekly with the beater bar disengaged. Blot spills with a clean white cotton cloth. Hand-wash by a wool conservator every five to seven years. The over-dye holds its tonal balance with this routine.

Reference

• Medium: hand-knotted wool patchwork on cotton foundation
• Dimensions: 183 x 244 cm (6' x 8')
• Construction: patchwork, indigo over-dyed
• Hands: 2-3 weavers, ~4-5 months
• Pile: hand-spun wool
• Dye: antique wash and indigo over-dye
• Origin: India

Free shipping anywhere in India. Cash on delivery accepted. 7-day exchange.